The next few hours could decide the future of Gaza Strip. The countdown has begun. Yes, because tomorrow, Monday 29 April, a delegation of Hamas will travel to Cairo, Egypt, to take part in talks on the cease the fire. Tel Aviv had made its move by presenting a proposal to the pro-Palestinian group truce linked to release of the hostages. The organization has made it known that it is evaluating what has been received with a view to taking an official position. In the meantime, a telephone conversation between the Israeli prime minister is expected Benjamin Netanyahu and the president of the United States Joe Biden.
Israel’s proposal and Hamas’ response
The spotlight will be onEgypt. A senior Hamas official said that a delegation from the movement will give its support answer at the proposal of an Israeli truce linked to the release of the hostages. Just yesterday the group explained that it was “studying“this counter-proposal, specifying that he would present”his answer once the study is completed“. “A Hamas delegation led by Khalil al-Hayya he will arrive in Egypt tomorrow and will give the movement’s response” to the Israeli proposal during a meeting with Egyptian intelligence officials, the source told the agency AFP.
The Washington Post wrote that a senior official of the Qatar would have urged Israel and Hamas to show “greater commitment and greater seriousness” in the ceasefire negotiations in interviews with Israeli media, as pressure grows to reach an agreement that would free some Israeli hostages, and which could unblock the situation in the Gaza Strip (or at least freeze hostilities). The Ministry of In any case, Hamas Health announced a new death toll: 34,454 dead and 77,575 wounded, in over 200 days of war.
Direct line between the USA and Netanyahu
From Saudi Arabia, where an extraordinary meeting of the World Economic Forum is being held, the president of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, called on the United States to prevent a ground invasion in Rafah. If it were to take place, he said, the operation would be “the greatest disaster in the history of the Palestinian people“. The American Secretary of State is also expected in Saudi Arabia Antony Blinkenwhere he will discuss in particular the “efforts underway to reach a ceasefire in Gaza that would allow the release of the hostages“, informed the US State Department.
Speaking of United Statesin the next few hours we are waiting for yet another one comparison (telephone) between Biden and Netanyahu. From what little has emerged so far, the two leaders are expected to discuss a potential agreement for the release of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza, the arrest warrants expected for senior Israeli officials by the International Criminal Court and preparations for an incursion in Rafah.
Meanwhile, the war continues. L’Israeli army reported that it had carried out new attacks and operations in the Gaza Strip overnight by land, sea and air against alleged Hamas targets.
Israeli army fighter jets attacked and “precisely dismantled launch sites ready to fire in Israeli territory“, reads the army note, which adds that the armed forces continue to operate in central Gaza.
